In the Leadership in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology training program, students are provided a broad-based education that cuts across traditional departmental and field-of-study boundaries, blending disciplines of pharmaceutical science, chemical engineering, biochemistry and chemistry. This program operates in close collaboration industry at both the local and national levels, and is currently supported by a broad-based group of corporate sponsors that leverage NIH support to provide interdisciplinary education in pharmaceutical biotechnology to graduate students in the University of Colorado's Departments of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Chemistry and Biochemistry. The Leadership in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology training program has seven major thrusts: 1. Lecture and laboratory coursework designed to provide a broad-based education in pharmaceutical biotechnology 2. Laboratory rotations 3. An industrial mentor program designed to enhance both recruitment and retention of students 4. A summer internship program with our industrial collaborators 5. Interdisciplinary thesis research 6. Leadership activities, including training in research ethics 7. Seminars and symposia. These seven thrusts enable students to be educated in practical issues in pharmaceutical biotechnology (e.g., intellectual property issues, regulatory affairs and basic business concepts) as well as multidisciplinary scientific ones. This prepares students to perform well when they take subsequent positions in industry, academia, or government. To make sure that our research is rooted in practical problems, we rely heavily on our industrial colleagues as a source of new challenges that we may attempt to address. Students benefit from experiential training in non-academic settings, gaining an appreciation of the ever-changing biomedical and pharmaceutical industries. We incorporate active participation of our industrial mentors, industrial internships, and industrial seminar speakers to achieve this non-academic training. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The Leadership in Pharmaceutical Biotechnology training Program provides graduate students with the interdisciplinary research training needed to produce industry and academic leaders. These leaders have the broad-based biotechnology knowledge needed to translate advances in biosciences and bioengineering into new therapeutic products for the benefit of human health.